Quality of life? Chicken won’t stand

[spies04]

I have been trying in excess of two to three months to help my chicken walk and stand. I have given supplements, made a sling, built a wooden path to help her sit up, etc. with no success. She has been living in different dog kennels to protect her from the other chickens so she is living in solitude.

But I just question the quality of life. While she eats and drinks, she is so thin and deficates on herself so I have to bath her. I feel like I am at a crossroads to put her down because nothing improves. Are there options to euthanize her without breaking her neck because I just don’t think I can do that. Any guidance or help would be so appreciated!

 

[DaisyBuff]

Poor Thing, was she injured or just born without the ability to stand?

 

[spies04]

Poor Thing, was she injured or just born without the ability to stand?

She has been fine for quite some time and then started to sit down a lot and then it went to laying down. I initially thought it was Mareks but my vet ruled that out plus no other chickens were effected. Her legs move and they are warm so they aren’t broken. I really just don’t know what to do and is this a real quality of life sitting in a dog kennel.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have been trying in excess of two to three months to help my chicken walk and stand. I have given supplements, made a sling, built a wooden path to help her sit up, etc. with no success. She has been living in different dog kennels to protect her from the other chickens so she is living in solitude.

But I just question the quality of life. While she eats and drinks, she is so thin and deficates on herself so I have to bath her. I feel like I am at a crossroads to put her down because nothing improves. Are there options to euthanize her without breaking her neck because I just don’t think I can do that. Any guidance or help would be so appreciated!

I'm sorry about your hen.

If you are really questioning quality of life and considering putting her out of her misery, then it's very likely time.

The broomstick method (cervical dislocation) is a quick and efficient method of to cull a chicken.
Others cut the jugular.

I can't really comment on other methods, but if you are going to cull, then it needs to be quick for the chicken. It's not always easy on the keeper.

 

[cassie]

There is something very wrong with that chicken, but you know that. Whatever it is, it is not going to get any better. You know that too. If the chicken can't stand and cannot be a chicken it is long past time to put her down. I used a pair of very sharp big heavy duty pruning shears for that purpose. I hung the chicken up and whacked off the head before either I or the chicken quite knew what was happening. The only unpleasant part for the chicken was the hanging upside down part, but that was only for a few seconds.